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We're Christian moms who not only love books, but love helping our kids learn to love books - and the Lord. This blog is our ministry, started because we couldn't find a comprehensive website of Christian children's picture book reviews. We hope you find it useful.

(Founder, Executive Editor, Reviewer) is the mom of a sweet and sassy 9 year old girl and an active 6 year old son. She's also the author of over 20 books. Visit Kristina at her blog Proverbs 31 Woman.

(Reviewer & Special Project Copyeditor) is the mother of Pierce, who is 15, and Natalie, 21. Christine is also the author of 11 children’s books. She lives in Ohio with her husband Bill, her son Pierce, and her dog, Black Velvet. Follow Christine's blog here.

Suzette Ladouceur(Reviewer) is a stay-at-home, homeschooling mommy to two littles (5 and 2), and wife to a sweet, loving husband. Before choosing to stay at home with her children, she was a teacher for 11 years - 1 year as an elementary music teacher and 10 years as a 4th/5th grade teacher. Learn more about Suzette and her family her blog, The Joy of Homemaking

(Reviewer) is a wife, mom, 5th grade teacher and cancer survivor. Her daughter Sydney is 10, son Lucas is 5 and daughter Ella Grace is 4. You can learn more about Amy and her story at her blog, Some of the Best Things in Life are Mistakes.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Abbie Smith’s Can You Keep Your Faith In College? addresses the transition from high school to college life...and the issues such independence brings. The book is a collection of stories written by students from fifty campuses. Each of its twelve chapters (The Transition, The Classroom, The Dorm, The Pressures, The Greeks, Dating, Outside the Classroom, Sports, Going Abroad, Barriers, Small Moments, and A Faith Worth More Than Gold) has a short introduction to the topic from Smith and includes a Scripture verse. Each testimony within the chapter ranges from a single page to three pages in length. Some read like a blog, others like an intimate conversation, and still others like a devotional. With such a wide offering of stories, readers are bound to find an experience that resonates with them.

What I Like: Besides talking about the temptations, pitfalls, fears, and pressures faced by college students, most writers also shared what s/he learned about life and faith from those experiences. And while not every question is answered, many perspectives and approaches to finding the answers are offered. I think students about to enter college would greatly benefit from reading the book… if only to know that they are certainly not alone in their struggles… and that they can find help and hope from a God who is very much interested in their lives. It’s an inspirational book with a healthy does of gritty reality. And it’s the authenticity of those gritty voices that give it power.

What I Dislike: Although I appreciated the brief snippets contributed by each writer, I felt like some of the stories needed to provide more details so the reader could understand the full impact of the situation and resolution (or lack thereof).

Overall Rating: I'm torn between Excellent and Very Good, but given the fact that there are few books like this out there, I'm going with Excellent.

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The books reviewed on this website are often review copies, which are sent to us free of cost, as is traditional for all professional book review publications. We receive no perks, payment, or other freebies for reviewing books, and we are not required or encouraged to review books in a positive manner.

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